Wheeling Man Convicted Of Illegal Possession Of A Firearm

WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA — A 28-year old Wheeling, West Virginia, resident who threatened to kill his girlfriend and others with a semi-automatic rifle was convicted this week in Federal court after a two day jury trial.

United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced that JORDAN L. LAUDERMILT was found guilty on Wednesday of being a “Felon in Possession of a Firearm” as a result of his use of a Ruger .22 Caliber Rifle in a domestic dispute on Justice Lane in Ohio County in February of 2011. Evidence presented at trial established that LAUDERMILT demanded a cash payment from his girlfriend and when she refused to comply he threatened to shoot her, her father, and her brother. Ohio County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to the scene and placed LAUDERMILT under arrest after surrounding the house and observing him yell out threats of harm for approximately twenty minutes.

“The deputies from Ohio County deserve tremendous praise for diffusing a very volatile situation and ensuring that no one was injured or killed,” said Ihlenfeld. “This could have turned deadly but did not thanks to the very sound tactics that were used to approach the home and to engage and arrest the suspect.”

LAUDERMILT was prohibited from possessing firearms of any kind due to his prior felony convictions for “Nighttime Burglary” in Ohio County in 2003 and for “Delivery of Heroin” in Brooke County in 2004.

LAUDERMILT, who is in custody pending sentencing, faces up to 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

This case was prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld and Assistant United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard and in addition to the sheriff’s department it was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.